College Basketball: Previewing Today's Iowa-Wisconsin Game

This weekend's slate of college basketball includes matchups between some of the best teams in the country. Arizona played Houston, Michigan faces Duke, and Iowa State plays BYU, to name a few. Additionally, Sunday features a handful of games to watch -- including Iowa going up against Wisconsin.

Let's take a look at who to watch in the Hawkeyes-Badgers matchup:

Iowa Hawkeyes

Bennett Stirtz

Bennett Stirtz is the top prospect to watch in this game. The former Division II guard is averaging 20.5 points, 4.6 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.9 turnovers per game while shooting 70.2% at the rim (104 attempts), 48.4% on non-rim twos (91 attempts), 39.5% from three (162 attempts | 10.7 three point attempts per 100 possessions), and 84.4% from the free throw line (128 attempts) for Iowa so far this season.

The 6-foot-4 guard has been the offensive engine of the Hawkeyes -- unassisted on 69.6% of his made field goals while assisting on an estimated 26.4% of his teammates' made field goals when on the floor this season. Stirtz is one of the most efficient high-volume pick-and-roll ball handlers in college basketball and is projected to be a first round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

Alvaro Folgueiras

Another player to watch for the Hawkeyes is 6-foot-9 forward Alvaro Folgeuiras. The Robert Morris transfer is averaging 8.2 points, two assists, 3.8 rebounds, and one stock per game while shooting 71.2% at the rim (59 attempts), 36.4% from beyond the arc (77 attempts | nine three point attempts per 100 possessions), and 70.4% from the free throw line (despite being a 77.8% free throw shooter at Robert Morris). The Iowa free throw sample size is only 54 attempts, while the Robert Morris sample is 144 attempts -- meaning regression to the mean is likely on its way. Folgeuiras is also recording a notable assist percentage of 18.4.

Wisconsin Badgers

Nolan Winter

Winter is a 6-foot-11, 220-pound big who's averaging 13.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.7 stocks per game while shooting 79.7% at the rim (118 attempts), 37.5% on non-rim twos (32 attempts), 31.3% from beyond the arc (80 attempts), and 74.2% from the free throw line (89 attempts). The junior met the Productive Sophomore Query last season -- 41 of the 57 players (72%) who have met the same criteria played five-plus years in the NBA or are currently in the league. Past players to meet the query include Donovan Clingan, Walker Kessler, Franz Wagner, Donovan Mitchell, and Draymond Green, to name a few of the higher-outcome players.

Read More: The Productive Sophomore Query

Other players to monitor on Wisconsin include Austin Rapp, John Blackwell, and Andrew Rohde. Rohde has previously met the Efficient Tall Freshman query -- 41 of the 60 players (68%) who have met the criteria played five-plus years in the NBA or are currently in the league. Past players to meet the query include Cade Cunningham, Moses Moody, Josh Green, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Mikal Bridges, to name a few of the higher-outcome players.